The Forgotten Child
by Amaryllis Fay
Summary: Harry is the long lost child of Severus Snape and Lucius Malfoy. After an epic final battle, the two regain the knowledge of their missing son, and they seek to build a relationship after all these years of separation.
1. Chapter 1

**The Forgotten Child**

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Harry Potter or any of JK Rowling's works. I wish I did, but alas, some things were not meant to be…

**Summary:** Harry is the long lost child of Severus Snape and Lucius Malfoy. After an epic final battle, the two regain the knowledge of their missing son, and they seek to build a relationship after all these years of separation.

**Warnings**: This story contains self-harming, if this is a trigger for you please do not read. This will also have relationships between two men, if you have a problem with this then don't read the story.

Ron and Albus Dumbledore bashing.

_**Prologue**_

It was over. It was finally over. The war which had ravaged the lives of countless innocents and that had ruined my life was over. I could now go home and try to make sense of the shambles, which was currently my life.

As I stood there starring at the corpse of yet another Death Eater I shivered, thanking my lucky stars that it wasn't me or my husband in it's place.

It had ended in a mass of exploding lights. The boy, Potter glaring at the Dark Lord, shouting out in anger at the monster that had ruined his life. A ferocious duel had ensued, coming to a close with the anguished shrieks of the snake-faced monster himself. It took a while for most of the spectators to comprehend what had happened, they stood in silence, looking on in shock at the boy-this small scrawny teenager- that had fulfilled all their deepest wishes. They were free! They were all free, it was quite difficult to believe, after years of spying and keeping his true allegiances, as well as his relationship secret had taken it's toll.

The years hadn't been kind to Severus Snape, resident Potions Master and resident Bat of the Dungeons. The face once full of laughter and smiles was now worn by the passing of time, heavy wrinkles marring a previously youthful and if not classically handsome still alluring face.

In truth Severus Snape had not smiled or laughed much since the disappearance of his son, nearly fifteen years ago. Since that fateful night where he and his bonded Lucius Malfoy had come home after a gala to see that their precious baby boy was missing, the crib smashed to pieces and the house elf that had been assigned to watch over their child lying dead on the ground surrounded by a pool of his own blood. The dark robbed potions master sank to his knees at the sight of the empty crib, whilst his husband searched frantically for any trace of their lost child. When it was certain that there was neither hide nor hair of their babe, the blond man sat next to his love and wept with him, each soaking up the comforting presence of the other.

Just as Malfoy was getting up to check on Narcissa and his other child Draco, a voice spoke from the shadows:

"I'm terribly sorry to do this to you my boys, but I fear it is for the greater good. If you were to raise this child he would certainly go dark and I cannot allow that to happen. Do not threat, the boy will be well looked after, and since I plan on obliviating you, you will not even miss him."

The men huddled on the floor froze in fear at the words being spoken, the man was obviously crazy, he was going to take away their son, but before either man could offer up any resistance the spell spilled forth from Albus Dumbledore's lips and the whole incident was forgotten. All the people who had been aware of Severus Snape's pregnancy-very few as Lucius had to have his public life with Narcissa, to sustain the propriety of the Malfoy name, had kept his relationship secret apart from a select trusted friends and family -been carefully obliviated.

And so it was that Snape and Malfoy spent the next fifteen years in complete ignorance of their missing child. Over the years they both grew embittered as the war with Voldemort raged on and a void they didn't even know existed remained unfilled in their souls. Lucius Malfoy had also taken on the mantle of spy at the second return of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named; his help had been invaluable in planning the final battle.

Nearly no lives had been lost, with the notable exception of Albus Dumbledore who perished mere seconds before The Boy-Who-Lived's glorious victory, under heavy spell fire from a group of Death Eaters in a last ditch attempt to turn the tide of the battle which clearly was not going in their favour.

So there the boy stood, trembling before the eyes of all the combatants of the Second Wizarding War against Voldemort. A great cheer rang out across the grounds of Hogwarts where the battle had taken place, the victors quickly rounding up the remaining Death Eaters before they could attempt to flee. They all rushed towards the gangly boy that was their saviour, intent on congratulating him on his impressive defeat of the wizarding world's greatest enemy, only to be stopped by a protective bubble that erected itself around the boy. The crowd stopped in its tracks staring at the teenager within as he fell to his knees before promptly fainting and slumping to the ground. The shield did not falter as expected when the child lost consciousness, and the first person daring enough to touch the shield was abruptly thrown through the air before landing heavily on the ground with a thud.

The spectators were forced to stare in shock as the Chosen-One started changing before their eyes, his limbs elongating to become graceful and elegant. The boy's face morphed so instead of the still childish features, high cheekbones, sculpted eyebrows and a slightly pointed chin appeared. Harry's usually messy locks, elongated so they would reach the base of his back when standing, and his hair took on a blue hue when the light hit it.

All in all Harry looked stunning, like an ethereal creature of myth and legend, not one person there could deny the child was beautiful, yet the slumbering form held a sense of fragility that made all the watchers want to protect him from any harm.

In the excitement no one noticed that Severus Snape, Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy all fainted at the same time. In reality these unexplained phenomenons were happening because Albus' magic had lost its hold with his death. The obliviate he had performed all those years ago was destroyed, meaning that the Snapes and Malfoys would once more know of their missing son.

As the three adults awoke they all looked at each other, the knowledge they had uncovered burning in their minds. Yet, before they could act, the sphere surrounding their son explode outwards in a wave of pure unadulterated power. All the onlookers were thrown back several meters, as they watched as the Potter boy rose into the sky by some unknown power and started screaming.

**AN:** Please review and tell me what you think, is this story worth continuing? Thank you for reading!


	2. Chapter 2

**The Forgotten Child**

**Chapter 2:**

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Harry Potter or any of JK Rowling's works. I wish I did, but alas, some things were not meant to be…

**Warnings**: This story contains self-harming, if this is a trigger for you please do not read. This will also have relationships between two men, if you have a problem with this then don't read the story.

Ron and Albus Dumbledore bashing.

There will also be mild/not so mild scenes of violence, but I will specify at the beginning of the chapter if it contains any violence, self-harming, etc.

**AN: ** This story is canon compliant up until the end of TGoF, elements from the last three books are incorporated but there are significant changes: no horcruxes, no occlumency lessons, the pairing SS/LL, etc…

For most people waking up in excruciating pain and screaming till their throats were raw was not a commonplace experience. Alas, for our dear Boy Hero it was not so. He often awoke from his terrible nightmares of Cedric falling through the veil and the dying pleas of his mother begging for mercy with a sore throat from his anguished cries, his body tangled in his measly sheets from all the thrashing. However Harry had learned to sleep with either a corner of the pillow or blankets in his mouth to muffle the noise. Uncle Vernon didn't like for his beauty sleep to be interrupted and he made sure Harry knew of his displeasure if he ever was roused from his slumber.

And so it was that when the Boy-Who-Lived did wake up he was unsurprised to feel his dry itchy throat and the leaden feel of his limbs. What did surprise him however was the feel of hard ground and the soft caress of grass on his back. No, this was not Harry's typical awakening… It was far worse.

Pain. Not your usual type of pain, not the mild headaches or sore knees from too much sport. This was the kind of pain only cruciatus could bring, and boy did he know how that felt. Hell he'd even had old snake-face's cruciatus and I bet that's probably the strongest one there is out there.

But why was he feeling this now? He's not in the graveyard is he? Oh please no. Merlin no, anything but that… I don't think I could take seeing Cedric die again, seeing his face shadowed with confusion looking up at me almost pleadingly. An unending rerun set up just for my own personal viewing pleasure, or should I say torture? I just want it all to go away, why can't they all just leave me alone?

The young man berated himself sternly, this was not the time for wallowing in self-pity, he could brake down like he usually did later, away from any possible prying eyes, but for now he had to figure out how he got here. As a matter of fact where was he?

Then it all came crashing down, in a violent explosion of lights behind the boy's closed eyelids. The careful months of planning under the ever vigilant gaze of Albus Dumbledore. The fake Occlumency lessons with Snape, which were disguised as remedial potions, which were in actual fact, combat training, not that it meant that the lessons had hurt any less. No in fact they probably hurt more than an intrusion of his mind did. The constant barrage of insults to his dedication, his physique, his parents and his mental ability had really taken its toll. Snape-the greasy git- had just been confirming what Harry already knew: that he was weak, a freak, not worth the sacrifice of his parents all those years ago.

Snape didn't even need to remind Harry of it, for he knew. He knew deep down in his bones, the very fiber of his being that he would never be good enough. He could never be their Chosen One, no matter how hard he tried. And it was killing him. Every time someone he knew died or he read in the Daily Prophet that a new attack had taken place, a little part of him perished along with the hope that he would ever survive this war and know a day where he could sit down with his family and do nothing. No worries plaguing him, even in his sleep, and no matters of the most pressing urgency forced onto his shoulders.

No, Harry Potter just wanted to go away for a very long time and not come back. But not even this most simple wish could be fulfilled, he had a duty to do, and even if it killed him he was going to see it through to the end.

So Harry lay there, unmoving, remembering his fight with Voldemort and his desperate uttering of the killing spell, which had miraculously hit its target. Seeing the long serpentine body falling to the ground in a graceful arc before hitting the dirt with a dull thud, a small plume of dust rising with the force of the impact.

His whole being burned, it felt as if he had been stretched to the very brink of death and then been healed hurriedly leaving no visible signs of the torture but not alleviating any of the pain. He wondered what had happened. He distinctly recalled standing there, looking at Voldemort's body and thinking that it was finally over, that he had survived, that he could many live the peaceful life he had envisioned.

Apparently this was not meant to be, for the last thing he recalled was falling after having lost control of his body. Surely if he had died it wouldn't hurt so much, then that must mean that he was alive. So that left him with a dilemma: if he was indeed alive why was he in so much pain and why was he not in the Hospital Wing? Harry was certain that had he been injured they would have taken him to the care of Madam Pomfrey. Yet he could feel grass through the material of his light jumper, which would mean he was still lying where he had fallen, on the lawns of Hogwarts, next to the corpse of his once nemesis.

What had happened he wondered? He strained his ears in the hope of catching some stray sound, but all he could hear was the muted hush of voices, sounding as if they were coming from a great distance.

All throughout his pondering Harry had stayed very still; deciding that if he was in any danger it was probably best for him to act unconscious until he could assess the threat to his person. Since he couldn't tell what had come to pass, and he seemed to be in no immediate danger, the teen made the decision to open his eyes and look up.

And oh boy what a sight greeted him.

When Lucius saw his child, his son, hovering in the air, his mouth hanging open in a scream of unbearable agony his heart broke. Throughout the last fifteen years he had known something was missing from his life, but he had not realized the magnitude of what he was yearning for. He turned to his bonded and saw that the same feeling was echoed in his eyes, the hurt and sorrow at what they had missed out on for all these years; never seeing their child, not being able to watch him grow up and become the strong young man he obviously had become. Their hearts broke for the 'what could have been's' and the 'what ifs' of life. Most importantly they cursed Albus Dumbledore for ever having interfered in their lives and taking away their son.

The two men stared stoically at their new found son, knowing with some previously buried paternal instinct that hey could do nothing to alleviate his pain and could only watch on.

Severus could only guess at what was happening to his son; the most obvious being that a very powerful glamour charm had faded which was the reason for the now dramatically changed appearance of the youth, the second he hazarded was the breaking down of blocks placed on Harry's magic, this was the source of the raw power that surged of the boy in waves, scorching the earth outside his sphere of protection which was still intact, and causing him to float in mid-air.

The potions master knew there was nothing they could do until the blocks had been destroyed completely and Harry's magical core had readjusted itself to the increased volumes of magic now coursing through its system. And so he prepared himself to wait out the possibly long hours before he could finally meet his son for the first time.

Yes Severus knew that he had already met the boy, Merlin, he'd taught what he'd thought was the Potter spawn for four years already. Looking back on his attitude towards the teenager he was sad to say that he had treated the child appallingly, but he must have been justified somewhere along the way, right? The boy had obviously been brought up as a wealthy little brat just like his father judging by the way he flounced around Hogwarts and was always flaunting school rules.

The lad had no respect for authority and seemed to believe the whole world was at his beck and call, well Severus had striven to prove him wrong throughout his years at the school by assigning detentions and trying to impress upon the boy the foolishness of his brash -rushing headlong into danger- attitude.

Yet even with him reasoning away his assumptions and subsequent treatment of his child, a small voice in the back of his mind still told him that he had been wrong to judge the boy thustly based merely on the relation he had to his father, a father which he had never known and who was in fact not even his real father! He looked back at the most recent combat training and cringed as he recalled the verbal diatribe he had continually spewed:

'Is that the best you can do Potter? I thought you were a hero, always going out and saving the innocents? Or was it all done for the publicity, we know how much our resident celebrity loves the spotlight. Well that didn't go so well last year did it, what with the unfortunate death of our young Mr. Diggory. I told them you shouldn't compete in that tournament but exceptions always seem to be made for you Mr. Potter, don't they? Well not with me, in this classroom you will be treated as any other student, do you understand Mr. Potter or shall I use smaller words so that your pitiful intellect may keep up with my instructions? No, then we shall continue with our previous lesson…'

On and on he had raged at the child, and the poor thing had barely offered more than token resistance, his eyes admitting defeat and acceptance of his words.

Looking back he realized that the child that had come to the school that September was not the same as the one that had left. He was skinnier and more withdrawn, he also seemed to be actively avoiding his friends, an act which was decidedly odd as the Golden Trio was nearly inseparable. He would have to keep a closer eye on his son's behavior to be certain that nothing untoward was happening under his nose.

The spectators that had gathered around the child were all quietly herded of the scene, the body of the fallen being moved and the lawn cleared of any debris. Eventually only the most important figures were left standing there. Severus, Lucius and Narcissa all stood together, whilst around them milled the other order members who were close to the child, McGonagall, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, Kingsley Shackelbolt-who had become the new minister of magic after the unexpected assassination of Minister Fudge- and the elder Weasleys: Bill, Charlie, Molly and Arthur.

The parents of the hovering child had decided to not divulge the secret of the boys parentage until he was awake. They thought the child would feel betrayed enough knowing that the man he had considered a grandfather figure for years had taken him from his real family, they did not want to add to that the weight of everyone else knowing the truth before Harry- for the boy absolutely hated to be kept in the dark - to what surely would be an intense betrayal.

The only reason the Malfoys and Snape were allowed to stay was because they claimed to know the reason behind Harry's ailment. However they absolutely refused to divulge even the tiniest of details unless they were to speak to the teenager directly.

This had certainly peaked the curiosity of the rest of the Order of the Phoenix who were completely befuddled as to Harry's state, and wondered how two ex-Death Eaters and one's wife would know the reason behind the Chosen One's mysterious bout of floating and change of appearance.

Before too many more questions could be asked the boy's screams ceased and his body gently lowered itself to the ground, the protective shield was still in place, but the child at least no longer seemed in pain, which was a relief to all present.

An excited hush broke out among the remaining spectators; the teen seemed to be stirring. The now elfin looking creature sat up, his midnight blue locks cascading down his back, as if moved by some unseen wind created purely for the sole purpose of making the thick strands float romantically around the boys face. Molly Weasley opened her mouth, ready to question the child, but all that emerged was a gasp that was echoed by the other people present; for as his eyelids fluttered open they saw that the once stunning emerald green eyes were gone, replaced instead by bright shimmering orbs of the purest silver that seemed to see down into the deepest recesses of your soul.

Harry was confused, scratch that, he was down right terrified. He wakes up to see a bunch of Order member surrounding him, along with the Malfoys-who knows why they're there, yes Harry knew that Lucius had been a spy for their side for years, but that didn't mean he had to like the man did he? And his wife seemed like a real snob, maybe she was nice but he didn't really think they would get on well- and Snape, now why on earth was Snape there? The man absolutely loathed him, never mind that he didn't actually see Harry but saw James, the man had still made his life a living hell for the past four and a bit years.

The second thing that befuddled Harry was the fact that there was a shield around him, when did that happen? It couldn't be him doing it, could it? He was weak; he didn't have the kind of power to sustain a full body shield even when unconscious. And why was everyone staring at him, he's not horribly disfigured or something is he? That would be just his luck, you kill Moldywarts and then you end up looking like him. Honestly can't a guy just get a brake?

Obviously not judging by the gobsmacked looks on the faces of all those present. With a shaky voice Harry asked: "Um, guys…" But Harry cut himself off with a strangled gasp born of shock, for the voice that had emerged from between his lips was definitely not his. This soft lilting voice that would sound more appropriate coming from a long forgotten mythical creature, not an ugly runt of a teenager. What on earth was going on, he looked down at his body and saw that his skin glowed with an unnatural light, as if a ray of sun was lodged firmly under his skin and was emitting its rays outwards. His fingers were long and thin, reminding him oddly of his potions master's, they seemed to also possess the same grace and delicacy. Speaking of delicacy, his whole frame seemed to be longer and slimmer, there was almost certainly something going on here.

Gathering his courage Harry braced himself and asked the question that had been burning in his mind: "What's happened to me?"

The gathered adults looked on in amazement, they too had been perturbed by the melodious voice and piercing eyes. They quickly gathered themselves for they could see the obvious disquiet lurking in the boys silver gaze, surprisingly it was Narcissa Malfoy that stepped forward and slowly started approaching the shield, she spoke in soft tones as if she were addressing a wounded animal: "Harry, do you think you could take the shield down for us please? We just want to check and see if you're ok, we promise we're not going to hurt you."

The company stood in shock at the sight of Narcissa Malfoy comforting the Boy Who Lived, but her words seemed effective for the shield crumpled before their eyes, and Harry sat up somewhat straighter before once more repeating his previous question, this time with a bit more steel in his voice: "What's happened to me? Why are you all starring at me as if I've grown a second head? I haven't have I" he chuckled nervously, "Oh Merlin, please say I haven't been horribly disfigured or something? Sirius please tell me what's going on?"

Said man approached his now distraught godson, with the intention of hugging him but as soon as his hand touched the boy he was propelled powerfully through the air. The Order up till now having remained silent and unmoving burst into action, Remus and the twins rushing to Sirius' side to check for any injuries whilst the others now gathered around a hysterical Harry who was apologizing profusely to any and all.

No one dared to touch the boy for fear of suffering the same fate as the dog animagus now lying prostrate on the ground knocked out cold. The adults all murmured soothing words in the hope of calming the teen but to no avail. They eventually came to the conclusion that they could do nothing for the child when he was so worked up and so cast a mild sleeping charm upon the huddled form to ensure that he would sleep peacefully until they could get him to the Hospital Wing.

And so it was that a slumbering Harry Potter was transported to the care of Madame Pomfrey followed by an assortment of Order of the Phoenix members and one unconscious Sirius Black.

**AN:** I'm sorry you didn't get to read the meeting between Lucius, Severus and Harry – please don't kill me- but it will definitely happen next chapter, so keep on I have a question, do you want Harry to be a magical creature? I think it would be pretty cool, but I'd like to hear what you think. So review and tell me what you think. Phoenix5: I was thinking it could be that but I decided on an alternative explanation. You will find out Harry's name soon, don't all my guest reviewers thank you. If you ask any questions I will try to answer them in the AN section, otherwise thank you for everything!

Thank you for reading, and all your wonderful reviews! They really motivate me to write faster.


	3. Awakening

**The Forgotten Child**

**Chapter 3: Awakening**

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Harry Potter or any of JK Rowling's works. I wish I did, but alas, some things were not meant to be…

**Warnings**: This chapter mentions of **child abuse.**

**AN: **Thank you to everyone that reviewed. Yes I know I'm a horrible person for not updating sooner but please spare me.

White light streamed through the large glass windows, illuminating the hospital ward and the occupants within. Our young boy hero lay sleeping on one of the sturdy white beds, resting under the crisp linens. The Snape-Malfoys, the Weasleys, Sirius Black –having recovered from being knocked unconscious by his godson- and Remus Lupin all stood around the young man's bed waiting for him to stir. Poppy had done all she could for the boy, spelling a calming draught into the boy's stomach. No diagnostic spells would work on the unconscious teen, and they had all committed themselves to waiting for the child to rouse himself in order to get the answers to all their questions.

The adults conversed in hushed tones, Narcissa, Lucius and Severus off to one side.

"How are we going to explain all this to the child? He was obviously distraught when he first woke up, and this kind off news is not going to help him any. " hissed Severus.

"Well we can't just not tell him anything, that would be an even bigger mistake. I think the best thing we can do is explain calmly that Harry is our son, and also elaborate on our relationship with Narcissa as well as what Dumbledore did. As to Dumbledore's reasoning, we can only speculate. But as soon as we're done detailing the situation to our son we should pay a visit to Albus' portrait. I am sure with the right persuasion he will be more than willing to tell us his reasoning." Lucius replied with a dark gleam in his eyes as he finished his sentence.

Before they could converse further they heard a soft whimpering sound coming from Harry. All of the adults rushed to the boy's side, seeing if they could help him. They were greeted with sight of long black tousled hair and large silver eyes staring back at them. When Remus tried to approach the huddled form, all that happened was a pitiful half-sob emerging from the teenager. He backed away slowly, making sure to make no sudden movements. Surprisingly it was Narcissa who broke the silence, gently calling out to the youth. "Harry…"

Okay, he was pretty sure he was in the hospital wing now. Nothing else held the exact same smell of potions and almost unnatural cleanliness.

Oh God, why did his body hurt so god damn much! If he was in the Infirmary he would have expected his wounds or whatever was wrong with him to have been dealt with by now. Well there weren't many other choices then to just get up and ask Madam Pomfrey for a pain-killing potion. So Harry struggled to escape the realm of unconsciousness.

When he finally coaxed his eyelids open, it was to see a group of people huddled around his bed. This was definitely not good. When the blurry shape of a man approached he started to panic. This reminded him to strongly of the times that Uncle Vernon would approach him when he was already down and injured and start whipping him with his belt or punching and kicking him with his great beefy limbs. He couldn't deal with this right now. The thought that he was safe in Hogwarts and that his Uncle couldn't possibly be there didn't even enter his mind. All he could think about was avoiding a beating at all costs. He didn't think his body could handle one at the moment. And the best way to do that was to generally avoid eye contact and apologise for anything that had ever gone wrong under the sun. If he was lucky, and his uncle wasn't already too drunk he would get of with a slap to the face. If he was unlucky, well, he didn't linger on those thoughts for long.

No one knew what kind of hell was reserved for Harry every summer when he was sent back "home", he thought with a sneer. Yes it was so absolutely positively lovely to go back to that god-forsaken place where he was denied food and clothing, was treated like a house elf and then beaten for not doing all his chores well enough. It was pretty hard to do all your chores when you were pretty sure you had a few broken ribs and maybe a broken wrist. If it wasn't for his magic healing him, Harry didn't think he would have survived for very long in the Dursley household. When he was younger he had thought it normal that he healed so quickly, but after a boy in primary school had broken his ankle and had worn a cast for a few weeks, he had realised that he did heal at a much faster then average rate. And with the realization that he was abnormal came the thought that maybe when Uncle Vernon beat him and called him "freakish" he did have a good reason for doing so. One of Harry's few comforting ideas when he was young was that Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia actually cared for him and when they hit him or denied him food it was in the goal of making him "normal", and therefore worthy of their love.

And Harry had tried his best to be just like Dudley and the other boys but no matter how hard he worked at his chores or how little he ate, or how much he begged his body to not heal itself and prove its "wrongness" it never worked. So Harry reluctantly got used to the idea that he would never be loved and that he would forever live as an outcast and freak and that the Dursleys were absolutely right in their treatment him.

When he had arrived at Hogwarts years later, reality had come crashing down hard. He had always entertained the notion that maybe, just maybe it wasn't normal for your family to starve and beat you, but these thoughts had always been ruthlessly repressed. To finally be confronted with undeniable proof that your darkest fears were real was just terrifying, so Harry had taken to carefully hiding all his feelings behind a mask. Layers upon layers of fake emotions and reactions that would stay firmly in place until he could be alone and let his true self emerge. Not even Ron or Hermione knew quite how truly scared he was of most adult men. This was one of the main reasons he hated Snape. He reminded him too much of his uncle, constantly leaning over him and spouting disparaging comments about him and his parents.

Harry honestly didn't know how he had managed to hide his past from everyone; it was a miracle he hadn't been found out. It probably helped that almost straight after the beginning of first year he had mastered glamour charms and silencing spells. Now he didn't even notice the strain on his magic from keeping the glamours up all the time.

So Harry hardly thought he could be blamed that his first reaction when a tall man approached him when he was hurt was to cower in fear. It didn't help that he remembered the final battle, waking up and sounding nothing like himself to then proceed to have a panic attack, at lest that's what he thought it was. It was only when he heard a female voice call out his name did he start to calm down. He knew for sure it could never be his relatives, for they had never called him by his name. Boy, freak, waste of space, good for nothing, pest, all of these he had heard on a regular basis but never Harry.

So hearing his name being spoken by a woman that he knew was not his Aunt was a great comfort. Having calmed down completely Harry opened his eyes, which had been screwed shut and looked at the now further away crowd that formed a ring around his bed.

He wasn't surprised to see the Weasleys or Sirius and Remus but _was _shocked to the see the Malfoys and Snape. He realised now that it was Mrs Malfoy who had called out his name and was the one currently closest to his bed. Oddly enough he felt strangely comforted by her presence. He realised that she had been speaking and concentrated on her words. As soon he focussed all of the sounds rushed back in, in one giant tumult of sound. It wasn't a particularly nice experience and Harry's head was still reeling a bit when he finally understood Narcissa's words.

**AN**: Thank you again for all you reviewers, please continue to do so, it really is a brilliant motivation to keep on writing. I've already started the next chapter and will hopefully post it soon. Review Please!


	4. Chapter 4

**The Forgotten Child**

**Chapter 4**: Explanations

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Harry Potter or any of JK Rowling's works. I wish I did, but alas, some things were not meant to be…

**Warnings: **some swearing, mentions of abuse, descriptions of self harm, may be triggering.

HPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPH

"Harry. Harry dear, can you hear me? Don't worry, you're safe here, no one can touch you here. It's over you did it, he's dead, and he's never coming back. It's okay, no need to panic, just try to focus on my words and breathe slowly and deeply, that's it, in and out, in and out…"

It seemed to be working for Harry had regulated his breathing to coincide with Narcissa's instructions. Now he was just staring intently at the blond, obviously waiting for an explanation of some sort.

Narcissa turned to the rooms' occupants, waiting to see if any of them would say anything.

"Harry darling, Severus, Lucius and I have some important news to discuss with you, I think it would maybe be better if we were alone for this conversation…" she glanced at the rooms other occupants as she spoke.

"NO… please I would rather they all stayed…" the teen shifted nervously on the bed, barely concealing a wince as the movement caused his aching muscles to throb. Unfortunately for him his discomfort did not go unnoticed from the dark haired potions master.

"Potter, if you must insist on having all of your fan club around you for our explanations at least let us heal you before hand. I don't want to have to endure your constant shuffling and fidgeting." At those words Madame Pomfrey bustled in, and immediately started fussing about Harry, much to his embarrassment.

"What have you gotten yourself into now, Mr Potter, if you end up in here much more often I'll have to seriously consider dedicating a bed purely for you, for when you next land yourself in the Hospital Wing." She then waved her wand in a few complicated patterns over the child; it appeared the diagnostic spells were finally working. "Well the good news young man is that you are merely suffering from strained muscles and ligaments, nothing a mild pain-killing potion won't cure." With those words she walked off to a cupboard on the opposite side of the room and returned with a milky white potion, which she promptly handed to the bedridden child.

Harry quickly uncorked and downed the potion, unable to hide his shudder of revulsion at the horrible taste that reminded him of sweaty socks, and mouldy bread.

" Good, you should be all set now Mr Potter, all that I recommend is some rest and no strenuous exercise for the next few days, understood?" at Harry's nod she strode off to check on her other patients.

The 'fan club' as Snape had dubbed them, had remained very quiet throughout this whole exchange. They made careful note of how Harry's change of appearance was never mentioned. They were also very relieved to hear that the teen had suffered no real damage from his mysterious transformation.

Almost as one the group all turned to Narcissa obviously waiting for some kind of enlightenment as to the present situation.

"Harry" she started of uncertainly "are you absolutely certain that you want all of these people here to hear what I am about to tell you. There will be some information which may be quite upsetting for you." Harry looked a lot less sure of himself now, unhappy with the fact that some of the people he held closest to his heart may see him upset. After some careful deliberation he shook his head no. " Um, I guess I would kinda prefer it if you guys did leave. Not that I don't like you or anything!" he added hurriedly "It's just that I would like to hear it on my own…" the teen finished of in almost a whisper making those he considered family strain to hear him.

Remus smiled gently down at him " Sure cub, no problem, just know that we'll be right outside if you need us and that no matter what we will always love you."

The surrounding crowd all nodded their heads in agreement, murmuring words of encouragement and love before heading out of the infirmary doors.

Soon Harry was left with Snape, and the Malfoys standing around him, and to say he was nervous would be an understatement. He was bloody terrified! There, not two feet away from him stood two very tall imposing men, and he had no doubt that a blow from either would knock him out. And they were ex Death Eaters to boot. The only reason he hadn't panicked completely and demanded that his 'family' stayed with him as because of Lady Malfoy. She seemed awfully nice, and her voice was calm and soothing. It didn't mean he trusted her, just that he believed that she wouldn't hurt him, and possibly stop the men from hitting him if they got angry.

Of course his face betrayed none of his inner turmoil, conditioned through years of painstaking practice to only let the emotions that Harry deemed appropriate shine through.

The adults in question actually found it quite frightening to see the boy's face so emotionless but they decided to push on anyway.

Lucius spoke up first "Harry before we can explain properly you have to know a bit about us first. You know that Narcissa and I are married yes?" at the child's nod he went on "our marriage was not one of love, but of convenience. That does not mean that I do not love Narcissa, but more in the way I would love a sister, not as a lover. The truth is that I prefer men and always have. In fact I have been bonded to a man for well over twenty years, and I have loved him for each and every one of those years. That man, Harry is Severus Snape." At Harry's incredulous look, Snape scoffed. "What is it Potter? Didn't believe the greasy dungeon bat could ever be loved eh?" At his words, Narcissa and Lucius both glared at him, which promptly shut him up.

"I'm sorry Harry, you'll have to excuse Severus it's been a very emotionally draining day. Now were was I? Ah yes, so I have been married to Severus for many years, and shortly after we got married we learned that Severus was pregnant with our child." Harry's eyes again widened in shock, a man being pregnant? This was completely unheard of and bizarre. That was definitely not normal, men weren't supposed to get pregnant.

Seeing that the child seemed completely lost Narcissa stepped in " Harry dear, in the wizarding world it is perfectly normal for men to be able to carry children. Some men are born carriers due to some type of creature inheritance, or they can ingest a potion, which will enable them to bear a child." The teen looked confused and hesitantly asked a question "But if men can also conceive, how come Lucius was forced to marry a woman. I assumed the purpose for the union was for the um, heirs…" he trailed of uncertainly.

"Yes Harry, under different circumstances your assumptions would be correct. Unfortunately Lucius came from one of the rare old blood families that looked down on same sex unions. Usually it isn't a problem, since as long as there could be heirs and the bloodline was kept pure it didn't matter. Lucius was unlucky and his father insisted he choose a woman to wed. I already knew of Lucius' relationship with Severus, and I agreed to marry Lucius.

We were all good friends and so living together was no problem. In public Lucius and I were the perfect pureblood couple, but in private, Severus and Lucius could truly be themselves. In order to quell all suspicious rumours Lucius gave me an heir." When she reached this part Narcissa blushed lightly, dusting her normally ivory white skin with the faintest hints of pink. "Just because Draco was not born of an amorous union does not mean he was any less loved and cherished. Lucius and Severus' child was born a few months after Draco. He was the most adorable baby, eyes the colour of liquid silver and Severus' dark hair. All of us loved that child and Draco as if they were are own."

Narcissa then stopped her tale and looked to the other men, silently asking who would go on with the telling of this wild story. Finally Lucius spoke up and continued. " The presence of the boy was kept very secret, only Narcissa, Severus and I knew of his existence, along with one or two house elves. By then we were both spies for the order and our lives were constantly at risk. We eventually made the decision to inform Dumbledore of the baby's existence; so that in the unlikely case of all our deaths someone would know of the child and be able to properly look after it.

What we didn't plan on was Dumbledore betraying our trust. When the boy was around one year old, Severus and I had to attend a Death Eater meeting. We left the child in the capable hands of our trusted house elf Dippy. On returning from the meeting we saw that Malfoy Manor had been broken into, we were straight away terrified for our children's safety and ran to the west wing, where the children were kept. Upon arriving we saw the corpse of Dippy and the empty crib overturned. We were distraught, barely able to keep standing with the grief that lay heavy on our hearts. Yet before we could go check on Narcissa and Draco we were stopped short by none other than Albus Dumbledore, the light's great leader."

You could hear the hate in the man's voice when he spoke of the Headmaster and Harry wondered what he could possibly have done to warrant such ire. The teen held an inkling of doubt in his mind at what the reason behind such anger was, but he dared not properly acknowledge the thought.

"I remember seeing the man and being relieved. He had somehow been alerted to the break in and had come to try and help us find our missing little baby boy. Oh how wrong I was." He said ruefully. "Dumbledore, the sick bastard, was holding our son in his arms. He then proceeded to tell us that he was taking the child. Believe us Harry; we would have done anything to keep that child, anything in the world. Sold our soul to the devil himself if it meant that he was safe and kept out of harms way.

However, before we could do anything, that sick twisted man then proceeded to obliviate Severus, Narcissa and I, so that none of us would remember, never mind think of looking for our forgotten child." Lucius sounded defeated as he spoke his sad tale, and Harry had the inexplicable urge to hug the man. He quickly shook his head to rid it of such thoughts. It wasn't appropriate. Freaks didn't get hugs, freaks didn't deserve love or to be cared for like that child in the story, the child that had been kidnapped. The child with the silver eyes.

Harry was snapped out of his reverie by Severus speaking. " And so we lived on for fifteen years, unaware that our child, our joy had been taken away. We had always felt as if something had been missing in our lives and now we know what."

"Harry, when Dumbledore was killed during the battle, all his curses, all his magic's that he had used on people over the years vanished. We remember. Lucius, Narcissa and I finally remember. It appears that the headmaster also had enchantments placed on you: a strong glamour on your whole body and multiple blocks on your core.

Your appearance has changed rather drastically Harry, which is the reason for your sore muscles, your body finally has its natural form, it's also why your voice is different. Would you like to see?"

Harry nodded his head shakily panic rising in his chest to claw at his lungs. What if he was hideous? What if he really looked like the monster he was told he was for all these years?

Lucius conjured a full-length mirror, and placed it at the foot of the boy's bed. Harry had squeezed his eyes shut, in an effort to hide from his surely grotesque appearance. Narcissa seeing Harry's fright reassured him with gentle words that it was okay, that he needn't be afraid to look.

Summoning all his Gryffindor courage, Harry opened his eyes. Eyes that were no longer the colour of the Avada Kedavra curse, eyes that now matched the description of Severus and Lucius' child. His hair was impossibly long, pooling around his delicate frame in pitch-black tendrils, infused with the slightest hints of blue when the light hit it. Reaching up a hand, Harry touched his face; now filled with softer, more delicate features that gave him an ethereal quality, to make sure that they were, in fact, real. To his immense surprise they were, they felt solid beneath his fingers, more natural then his old face had ever felt. When he touched his hair he found it soft as silk and comforting to touch. Pushing the locks behind his ear he gasped in surprise when he felt a pointed tip. Staring into the mirror he could see that yes, his ears were now slightly elongated and pointed.

Harry had been confused as to why Dumbledore had put a glamour on him, but now he understood, he looked absolutely nothing like the Potters. That could only mean one thing… that he wasn't in fact a Potter.

The realisation hit him like a ton of bricks. He understood, he got why the Malfoy's and Snape were telling him that story. He was that child wasn't he? Oh god he was their child. The child that had been taken by Dumbledore. He was SNAPE and MALFOY'S child? This could not be happening. This wasn't possible. Hadn't he been through enough? Couldn't the universe just leave him alone? He just wanted to be left alone… Feeling the heavy gaze of his profe-no father on him, it was all too much. He couldn't stand to be there for another second. To have their pitying gaze on him. To wait to be told that they didn't want him and never would. Harry couldn't take it anymore. He just wanted out. And, to his surprise, his new more powerful magic complied and apparated him to the Forbidden Forest, far away from any prying eyes.

HPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPH

Severus could see that the child was upset when he looked in the mirror. Who wouldn't be when they realised that the face they had lived with, the face the had thought of as their own was not theirs, but that of an imposter. The teen touched his face as if searching for some sign of fakery. When the boy's pointed ears were revealed he was also stunned. He hadn't thought this was possible. He knew Lucius and he both had some creature ancestry, thus permitting him to carry his own child.

But there hadn't been a person powerful enough in either of their lines for years to receive a full creature inheritance. His son must be incredibly powerful in order for him to be a creature. And what creature would he be? Oh the purebloods liked to think that they were absolutely one hundred percent wizard but the truth was that most pureblood families had multiple creatures in their family trees. He would have to do some research in order to find out exactly what kind of creature Harry was.

His thoughts were interrupted by the strong feelings of anxiousness rolling of the boy in waves. The piercing eyes travelled briefly towards them and he could see understanding flicker in them before they were quickly averted. It seemed as if the child had figured it out by himself. Now all they had to do was clear up a few more details and then they could see how the boy was reacting.

A loud pop that signalled someone disapperating echoed around the room. The adults stood stunned as Harry vanished from their sight to Merlin knows where. Their child had done the seemingly impossible: he had apperated within the walls of Hogwarts. Harry must have much more power then they had ever thought possible, however that wasn't a priority, what mattered was finding the distraught boy.

"What in Merlin's name happened? He shouldn't be able to apperate!" cried Lucius. "Never mind that, we should focus on finding your son, he could be just about anywhere, and maybe he splinched himself. I doubt the boy has had any training in apperition and he could potentially be scattered around all four corners of the globe." Narcissa's harsh words spurred the two anxious parents into action. They left the Hospital Wing hurriedly only to encounter the Weasley clan along with the godmut and the werewolf. Seeing their harried faces they automatically assumed the worst.

"What have you done to my godson you scum. If you've hurt a hair on his head I'll make you wish you'd never been born."

"Oh, do be silent Black, don't speak of things you know nothing off" hissed Severus in reply to Sirius' questioning.

Narcissa intervened quickly to avoid any conflict "Now all of you listen here, Harry just realised some very upsetting things and his magic reacted to his wish to get away and apperated him to some unknown location. Now before you all ask what it is that upset him we aren't going to tell you. That's Harry's prerogative and his alone. So don't any of you try and go forcing the information out of him. He'll tell you in his own time, _if_ he decides to tell you. " The adults all looked slightly abashed at their behaviour and acquiesced to the scary witches demands.

"Alright, we have to organise a search party. We can hope that Harry is in the near vicinity, and so that's where we'll start. Bill, Charlie, check all the lower levels of the castle; Molly and Arthur check the main levels, Fred and George search the towers. Black and Lupin, you'll join us in searching the grounds and Forbidden Forest, hopefully your heightened senses of smell will help us track him down."

With Narcissa's orders issued they all set of to find Harry, all they could pray for was that he was still in one piece and not at the other end of the world.

HPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPH

Harry looked around in surprise. It appeared to be that he was somewhere in the Forbidden Forest. He recognized it due to the gloomy light barely penetrating through the thick foliage and the earthy and damp smell that permeated the air.

The relief he felt form being far away from his would be parents was immense. To have that kind of knowledge foisted on him was not good for his mental state. And it wasn't even sure that they _were _his parents. I mean come on, what are the odds of the dungeon bat and the Ice Prince's father being his real parents? No it surely couldn't be. He must've made a mistake, misinterpreted everything. Yes that's right, he had over reacted, it was all in his head. There was absolutely nothing to worry about.

Except there was something to worry about. No matter how much Harry wanted to deny it a small voice in the back of his mind kept saying that he was wrong. That he _was_ in fact the son of Lucius Malfoy and Severus Snape. That Dumbledore had tricked all of them, making them think he was some benign ruler always and unrelentingly working for the 'Greater Good'.

'Greater Good' my arse. The crazy old man left me at the Dursleys for years. I asked, no I _begged_ him every single year not to send me back there; he would always smile sadly and say that I was exaggerating or outright lying to him, and that I really should be grateful to my Aunt and Uncle for taking me in. Grateful? I should be grateful for being locked up, starved, beaten, rap-no that didn't happen, I won't believe it happened.

The more Harry pondered Dumbledore's behavior the angrier he became. Who was he to have made Harry suffer all these years and apparently needlessly too. For if Snape and Malfoy were his real parents then the blood wards had been a lie. There wouldn't have been a reason why Harry had to go back to that hell each year. He could have easily stayed at an orphanage or at the Burrow or Grimauld Place. God he hated that man.

Suddenly it was all too much for the teenager; his anger faded to be replaced with a profound sadness in those silver eyes. The type of sorrow that you saw in hardened soldiers or torture victims. Not the type of expression you expected to see on a fifteen year old.

And it was too much. It was all too _fucking _much. All these feelings buzzing around inside his head, making him feel as if he was going to explode, as if he was breaking apart at the seams, he couldn't deal with them. And so Harry used the one method he knew how.

He didn't know when it had started, the idea slowly creeping up on him, like some dark poisonous plant festering in his mind, poisoning his thoughts until one day: he did it. He had heard of it sometime in his primary years, how one of the older students had been pulled out of school and moved to some special place because they liked to hurt themselves. He didn't understand why anyone would want to cause themselves harm when he was younger.

But he realized after one of Uncle Vernon's beatings, sometime during the summer after fourth year, that the pain made the thoughts stop. There would be blessed silence in his head. No voices saying he was a freak and that he deserved this, no dark thoughts on how he had killed Cedric, no conscience telling him that he didn't _really _deserve this, that he should tell someone. No, all there was, was nothing…calm, peace at last.

He remembered it vividly, the first time he ever did _it_. Taking Sirius's pocketknife out, late one night, sitting in his bed. He had silencing and locking charms all around his curtains, just in case he made a sound or one of his dorm mates happened to wake up. Pressing the small blade to the creamy skin of his thigh. He knew most people cut themselves on their arms but he thought that even with glamour charms, there was more chance of someone seeing scars on your arm then on your thigh. No, only if he were getting showered or changed would he have to be careful.

He was scared, was this really a good idea? Would this ever really help? But logic never fully coincides with emotions and so he watched in morbid fascination, as small red trails of blood would trickle over his skin. Crimson teardrops that he dare not shed himself. All his pent up emotions, free to run wild with the deliberate motion of cutting his skin repeatedly. And ever since that first time, some four months ago, he had never been able to stop.

It was just so simple. Whenever he was stressed or angry or upset, all it would take would be one little cut and he would be better again. He could face the world and smile and laugh, even when on the inside he felt like he was dying, like he was slowly withering away. Could none of them see? Were they all blind to the masks he wore? To the pain he felt?

To be perfectly honest he knew he was being irrational, he wore the masks to make sure that nobody knew, and it was his fault if his facades were so good that no one could see his lies. So why was he complaining? Nothing mattered anyway.

So once Harry had again completed his ritual, he cleaned himself up, put the glamours back up, hiding the white scars and the still not healed and fresh cuts. He slid his knife into one of his trousers' pockets and lay down to sleep. For he was weary, sick of the world, and tired of trying to be who he was not. Harry fell into Morpheus' realm to the soft sighs of the wind in the branches above, and the chatter of animals around him.

HPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPH

**AN**: Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. It was a pretty emotional one for me to write. Please review, I love them sooo much.


	5. Chapter 5

**The Forgotten Child**

**Chapter 5:** Acceptance…maybe?

**Warnings:** None for this chapter

HPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPH

As Remus and Sirius roamed through the woods, they kept on sharing worried glances. They were scared for their cub. What had made him upset enough to apperate away? Of course his new appearance would cause some unsettlement, but they assumed that whatever was wrong would likely be easily rectified. At least, that was what Sirius thought; Remus, as the more reasonable and level headed of the two had indeed thought of the possibility that this change was permanent.

In fact, Harry had never smelt quite right. As a werewolf, his sense of smell was heightened; and he distinctly remembered the first time he had been near the squealing little monster wrapped in sky blue blankets. The child had smelt of pine needles, rain and sunshine. A more unusual combination he had never come across, however it wasn't this odd mix of scents that confused him, it was the fact that neither Lily nor James smelt even remotely similar to the babe. Usually newborns were a perfect mix of both their parents, so the odd smell had bothered Lupin, but seeing the tiny almost perfect replica of James apart for his eyes, which were the most stunning emerald green, reassured the lycanthrope. And he buried his fears into some long forgotten corner of his mind. That was, until now.

Now Lupin feared that perhaps his worry hadn't been unfounded and that he had made a grave mistake in choosing to ignore it.

It was as he was standing in the infirmary for the first time in a room with both Lucius and Severus that he realized that Harry smelled fairly similar to both men. A nagging thought crept into his mind then, what if Harry was their son. He now certainly looked like he could be. What with Severus' ebony hair and build accompanied by Lucius' facial features and eyes, although when thinking about it, Harry did have Snape's chin and jaw line. Anyway, he had to focus on finding Harry, that was his main priority, everything else could wait.

They ran on through the dense foliage, Sirius in his animagus form, so as to better scent out his godchild. Neither of them had ever wandered this far into the forest, the centaurs and other creatures were usually very territorial over their land, but as of yet no one had come forward to tell them to turn back. They didn't know if this was reassuring or not. It might mean that the inhabitants of the wood knew of their mission and decided to let them circulate unheeded, or that all the inhabitants were dead, massacred by Voldemort and his forces.

Both men sincerely hoped that it wasn't the latter.

Suddenly Sirius stiffened before galloping off into the distance. Remus sighed exasperatedly before jogging after him. He wasn't as young or as fit as he once was, and he was beginning to struggle keeping up with the Padfoot. He stopped abruptly, almost running into said dog before he could slow down his momentum. He looked up, startled, Padfoot was at the edge of a small clearing, standing extremely still and staring intently at the other end of the small field. The meadow was filled with long swaying grass and sweet smelling wildflowers; it was decidedly bizarre, especially considering they were just before Yule and all the rest of the forest floor was covered in frost, and in some places small snow banks.

At the end of the meadow was a giant oak tree. It was immense, its branches reaching far and wide, its trunk a good three meters in diameter. The oak tree appeared ancient, yet untouched by the passing of time. Unperturbed by the wars and conflicts that had ravaged the wizarding world, an unmoving witness to the ages of man.

And lying under its many branches and leaves was Harry, well, the new Harry anyway…

The teen slept on, oblivious to the two males presences. The nature that surrounded him however was not unaware. The branches were curled over the slumbering body protectively, and, when Remus and Sirius –now in his human form- tried to approach the child a lone wolf rushed out of Merlin knows where and started to growling in warning. The thing was _big_; it would tower over Padfoot and Moony if they were there, easily the biggest wolf they had ever seen, and this was including Fenrir Greyback in his full moon form.

Sharp teeth were bared in a clear warning: 'Approach the child and you'll have to deal with me'. Even Lupin who was an alpha werewolf knew not to challenge this beast. His most primal instincts were screaming at him to submit, to lie down and present his stomach and neck in a show of submission.

The wolf was covered in thick black fur, not a single hint of colour to be seen, what struck them however were the animal's eyes, they were the same shade as Harry's new ones; that distinctive colour, alike to liquid silver, set into perpetual motion. Intelligence shone in those swirling orbs, and they held their doubts as to this creature being anything even remotely ordinary.

Both men were more then a little scared and stuck for ideas. It was obvious that they wouldn't be able to approach the teen, for fear of being painfully torn to pieces by that power jaw full of fangs and those huge paws.

At a loss for what to do, they sent up green sparks from their wands in the signal they had previously agreed on with the Snape-Malfoys, in the event that they would find Harry before them.

All they could do now was wait.

HPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPH

Severus Snape was not a patient man by any means. No one, not even his beloved husband could ever say that he was. Severus was also not a man to suffer fools gladly, or to be made a fool of. And that was, in his eyes, what the Potter boy had just done. Disapperating without knowing how to and making them all go of in a wild goose hunt to find him. Of course the rational part of his mind could reason that it wasn't the boy's fault; that in situations of high stress, many a wizards magic would react to their wishes, unheeded of the anxious parents who would be given a heart attack at the sight of their newly found son vanishing before their eyes! So now one grumpy and irritated Snape was trudging through one Forbidden Forest in the middle of winter, all to find one idiotic child.

After a few hours of searching, it was a blessing to see the green sparks appear not too far away from their current location. Green was good, it meant Harry was unharmed, if it was red he didn't know what he would have done, it meant that Harry was injured, and really Severus thought to himself, hadn't Harry suffered enough hurt in his life?

Despite Severus' harsh view of the boy and his actions he had to acknowledged that it mustn't have been an easy life to lead. What with being hunted down by Voldemort and his sycophants for the past five years. Snape also grudgingly admitted that his treatment of the boy had most likely added to his already heavy burden. But was it his fault that every time he looked at the boy, the face of his tormentor would look back at him?

Guilt weighed down heavily on the potions master, for he knew he had done wrong by his child. His little boy that he had yearned for all these years, yearned for in a place that his mind could not access, but that his heart felt as acutely as if the separation had been just yesterday.

Arriving at the source of the green sparks, he along with Narcissa and Lucius emerged into a clearing, bathed in pale light. He straightaway noticed that the climate that seemed to reign couldn't possibly exist at this time of year. The gargantuan black wolf that stood poised over the prone form of his son however soon took up his immediate attention.

He would have attacked were it not for the fact that he realized what this beast was, and what it meant in correlation to his son.

Looking around he saw the stunned forms of his husband and what he considered his sister, along with the werewolf and the dogfather. Accessing their various expressions he deduced that he was the only one that had figured out why this creature stood guard over his son.

Sighing in annoyance he began speaking: "Alright, all of you listen up. Especially you two." he emphasized, pointing at Lupin and Black.

"What I am about to tell you will remain confidential and you will not speak of it to anyone else unless Harry gives you his express permission. Understood?" At their nods he went on. "Harry is Lucius and mine's son. The story as to how this came about can wait until another day." Severus added pointedly, glaring at Sirius in particular, who appeared to be about to interrupt with some rather crude comment. "The pertinent facts are that our son was taken from us a few months after his birth. The only people who had been aware of his conception were Lucius, Narcissa, Dumbledore and I. One night, after Lucius returned from a meeting we saw that the mansion had been broken into and that our son was missing. Dumbledore then appeared and obliviated us so that we wouldn't remember our son. We presume that he then placed strong glamours on him that changed his appearance and blocks on his magic. He then gave our babe to the Potters for some reason that we are currently unaware of. When Dumbledore died, all the magic that he had placed on Harry and us was destroyed, resulting in the change of form and the phenomenal increase in his powers."

At this Severus paused to make sure that the last remaining Marauders were following the conversation before turning to his family to see if they agreed with his decision to reveal this knowledge. At the encouraging looks he received he went on.

"The only reason I am telling you idiots this" he added with a sneer "is because I believe with Harry's power now unblocked that he received a creature inheritance from either Lucius or I." At the men's shocked looks he smirked and resumed "Yes, I know it is extremely uncommon, but I saw the child's pointed ears in the Infirmary. Also the wolf now hovering over my son is further proof of my theory." When Severus said this, all of the wizard's faces lit up with understanding apart for Sirius', who asked indignantly: "What! What is it that I'm missing? I saw the looks on all of your faces; you all obviously know what Snape is going on about. So tell me for Merlin's sake."

Remus decided to put Sirius out of his misery, as it appeared none of the Malfoy-Snapes seemed particularly inclined to do at the moment.

"Sirius, Harry is a wood elf, some of their more known of traits are their pointed ears, delicate faces, long hair, and also their animal counterpart. The wolf currently standing over your godson is his, and he will defend Harry with his life." Sirius looked relieved at this last part, knowing that someone would always look after his godson was a blessing. Even if he was confused as to how Harry could be Malfoy's and Snape's he decided to put his worries aside until he could garner more information. He had learned from his rash actions the night of Lily and James' death that going out on some crazy adventure or acting on the spur of the moment often led to dire consequences. Most notably his twelve-year stretch in Azkaban.

He would've gone on if it weren't for the trembling voice that stopped him.

"So it's true then," Harry said. He had awoken almost as soon as his parents had entered the clearing. Seeing the wolf hovering over him should have been terrifying but instead he felt a deep sense of calm, he understood at some innate level that this creature would never hurt him. " You two really are my parents" he added, staring at his potions professor and the ex Death Eater. At their acquiescence he sighed, nothing could ever be simple for him could it? And now he learns he's also a wood elf, whatever the hell that means. Well at least he now had one friend he knew would never leave him in the form of the wolf that was now his lifetime companion. He should really find a name for the animal shouldn't he; I mean he couldn't just keep on referring to it as 'the creature' or 'the animal' in his head.

At the idea of names a thought struck him: he wasn't Harry James Potter. Oh god, how sick was that, he didn't even know his own name. Gathering up his courage he looked up to his new parents. Softly, so that all the adults had to strain their ears to hear him he asked "What's my name? I mean," he stumble " my true name. I truly doubt it's still Harry Potter." He finished of with a nervous chuckle.

All of the people there were shocked, the Snape and Malfoys were surprised at their forgetfulness, how could they have not remembered to tell their child his name. Whilst Sirius and Remus stood flabbergasted, letting it all sink in. It had suddenly become painstakingly apparent to them that Harry, their Harry, their cub, was no longer theirs. He was a stranger. Not that they would love him any less, they had been through too much together for that bond to break now. But it was disconcerting that they didn't even know the name of the child that they had considered almost their own son.

After a few short seconds, which felt like a small infinity to all of the clearings occupants, Lucius stepped forward.

"Cerin, your name my son, is Cerin Aurelius Malfoy-Snape"

HPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPH

**AN:** I hope you like this chapter and Harry's new name. As to the wolf, please give me your suggestions for a name; the gender is as yet undetermined so give me ideas for both please. Thank you for reading and please review. :)


	6. Chapter 6: Names and Ire

**The Forgotten Child**

**Chapter 6:** Names, and Ire

HPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPH

Alright, I have a new name. That's not weird. This is completely normal. Right Harry...err, Cerin? And now I've started talking to myself, which is also completely normal, at least I hope it is…

HPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPH

Whilst Cerin was away in his own world, the adults were all looking at him expectantly; in all honesty, none of them knew what to expect from the teen. Severus was waiting for a temper tantrum followed by some childish demand or other. Sirius and Remus were also waiting for a fiery explosion. Their cub was somewhat known for having a short fuse, and they definitely thought that this whole incident could very well serve as the match that started the inferno. Lucius and Narcissa were mostly curious, they had never really interacted with the child, apart from Lucius who had briefly spoken to –alright, more like shouted at- the child, during the incident in second year. He sincerely regretted his actions, but he'd had to keep the Death Eater charade up at all times lest he be caught out and then consequently be brutally murdered, along with the rest of his family, whenever the Dark Lord came back. Which he was certain he would.

Lucius could never have let that happen, he valued his family more then his own life, and would have done anything in his power to protect them.

However what none of them was expecting was for Cerin to calmly stand up, and walk towards the giant wolf.

"Well hello there, you're my wolf aren't you? I can feel the connection. Well it's a pleasure to meet you, my name is Cerin, but I think you know that don't you, considering you were here for that whole conversation." Cerin took the wolf's huff for a yes and went on. " Well seeing as I have a new name how about I give you one eh?" The black mass of fur nuzzled the teen's neck in assent. "Hmm…I know you're a boy, and I don't even want to really think about how I know that but anyway" he shook his head to rid it of errant thoughts. "A name… Shadow?" The wolf gave him a disapproving look " Alrighty then not Shadow, too cheesy? Yeah I thought so too. Okay then, what about Mercury for the colour of your eyes?" The beast looked slightly more pleased but still dissatisfied." Cerin paused to really think, and then it came to him, he knew the perfect name: "Valerius, I think you'll like that am I right?" When Valerius puffed up his chest in pride, Cerin knew he had chosen wisely.

Cerin was just a bit embarrassed at the name he had chosen; it came from a Latin verb that meant to be strong. He wasn't really ready to admit to himself that he had picked the name because he longed for someone strong to look over him and protect him. He was sick of always having to deal with things by himself and if he had someone watching over him, well… it wouldn't exactly be unwelcome.

The teenager stepped forwards slowly until he could touch the soft fur with his hands. It felt oddly similar to his own hair, but somewhat coarser and thicker, all in all, the feel of it was overwhelmingly comforting. Seeing that Valerius didn't mind him petting him, he took one last step forward so his whole body was pressed against the warm mass. Breathing in he could smell the scents of wild flowers and pine. Standing there in the warm embrace his reaction was to relax his muscles that he hadn't even realized were tensed from all the crazy revelations he had just heard. He just felt so incredibly safe surrounded by the scent and feel of Valerius; he could have easily stayed there for eternity. Unfortunately he knew this wasn't an option, and that his real parents along with what he considered his surrogate parents were standing not ten meters away.

So he reluctantly moved away from the soothing warmth and turned to face his family.

"So… I'm you're kid. I can in all honesty say that I never saw that happening." Cerin smiled nervously whilst fiddling with his hair. All present could see that he was uncomfortable with this new arrangement.

"Cerin, child, you don't need to be nervous" Lucius said softly, trying to reassure the teen " We know that this is a shock and we don't expect you to be comfortable around us straight away. We understand that this relationship will take time and effort to build. All that Severus and I ask is that you give us a chance. Let us show you that we deeply care about you, and that the people you have met before now were mostly made up of masks we had to wear in order to protect our family and our lives. "

Cerin nodded his head uncertainly. He was glad they didn't expect him to straight away start acting like their beloved son. He wasn't even sure if this would work out, or if he even wanted it to work out. He wasn't all together sure how he felt about suddenly having a whole new family. Hell, he'd lived most of his life yearning for people who would love him unconditionally and take them away from the Dursleys. He shuddered at the thought of his fat relatives, and one skinny, horse-faced woman. God he hoped that neither man was like Uncle Vernon, he wasn't sure he could deal with that all over again. At least he didn't think they would ever touch him like Vernon had, beatings he could handle, the other, he most definitely could not cope with. The last time _it _had happened he'd been a mess for the whole week. Every summer when he returned to Hogwarts he was always more jumpy then usual, but he usual managed to hide his flinching soon enough. It was hard though, especially in potions, when Snape- err my dad? - would loom over him like Uncle Vernon liked to do before he did something particularly nasty.

One of the very first instincts that had been ingrained into Cerin was that when a man came anywhere near you and was angry was to either hide, run away, or if neither of those options were viable, to then try and plead your way out of any punishment that was sure to occur. At Hogwarts, being around the potions Master was hard, for he appeared perpetually angry, and that ire was all too often aimed at Cerin. However, knowing that the teachers couldn't hit you was a great reassurance, it didn't mean that Cerin didn't have to stop himself from flinching whenever Snape came near, but it did make it easier to hide his fear.

Narcissa stepping nearer to him brought Cerin out of his reverie. "Are you alright dear? How about we move back towards the castle, I'm sure the others are all very worried about you and would like to know that you're safe and sound."

Seeing Cerin's harried look she quickly added "And it's fine if you don't want to talk to them yet, I'm sure they'll understand that this is all a lot to take in and that you need some time to absorb everything before speaking to them."

The teen looked greatly relieved at this proposition "Thank you Mrs. Malfoy." he added quietly, unsure of how to address the kind woman that stood before him. To think that this was Draco Malfoy's mother was shocking. Oh god…wait, no, no no no no no. Dammit! That meant that _Draco Malfoy_, the bloody Slytherin _Ice Prince_ was his freakin half brother. The universe sure did have a twisted sense of humour, if it thought it was funny to give him Draco as a sibling. How often had he thought of having an older brother there to protect him from the abuse he suffered daily at the hands of his 'family'. Yet, when he'd finally grown out of his childish whims, and that he'd finally come to accept the fact that he would never have a family, that no one would ever want him; he got stuck with a sibling, one he didn't even like. Hell they hated each other, had since the first time they met. Cerin had always thought that Draco was a pretentious little brat, who thought too much of himself and that needed to be taken down a peg or two.

Oh well. There wasn't much he could do about it. Anyway it didn't seem all bad; he had to admit, Narcissa was very nice. Even Lucius seemed friendly, it was just Snape that he was worried about, the man had always loathed him, for reasons he could never comprehend. The worst thing was that if the man had showed him even a little bit of kindness that first lesson, or if he had just plain ignored him, he would have tried his absolute hardest to do well in that class. For it was the one subject that he had thought he could perhaps excel at. His hopes had been crushed that first lesson, and he had straight away known that it wouldn't even be worth the effort of trying. He knew that whatever he did would never be good enough for this man. That _he_ could never be good enough. He had _never _been good enough for anyone. He had always been the freak, the outcast, the odd one out.

All Cerin hoped for now was that Snape would maybe be nicer to him, seeing as he was his son and all. And wasn't that a weird thought. He had parents, two dads to be precise. What was he going to call them? He wasn't sure if he was ready to call them dad, it sounded much too personal. He guessed he'd just have to ask.

"Um, I'm sorry to ask, but what should I address you as, I mean, I know you two are my parents and all, but I just don't know what to call you…" The young man trailed off uncertainly, looking up at the two men, awaiting their answer.

"Well Cerin, I think, that if you feel uncomfortable with father, or dad, or a variation thereof, then you can just address Lucius and I by our first names. Is this acceptable to you?"

"Yes sir, err Severus, that's fine."

"Excellent, now lets get back to the castle before we all freeze to death. I do believe we've been out in this blasted cold for much too long."

At those words, all of the clearing's occupants rose up and started making their way towards the ancient castle.

Sirius and Remus moved towards their cub to check on him, however before they could get to close Valerius started growling warningly. He obviously didn't like the idea of the two men anywhere near his cub. Cerin was immensely grateful to the wolf, he couldn't deal with anyone touching him at the moment, and he probably wouldn't for a while to come. His emotions were running too high, even after using his special method of coping. And it was using up all his will power to hold up his masks and try to act normal in front of all these people.

"Hey Padfoot, Moony, I'm fine, I think that Val is just a bit protective of me, and might be for awhile. I mean we just met didn't we."

"We know cub, we're just a bit worried about you, we know that this is a lot for you to take in. Just know that Moony and I are here for you if you ever need to talk. Just because you're no longer James and Lily's kid doesn't mean that we care for you any less. Remember that Prongslet, we'll always be there for you, no matter what okay?"

"Yeah, sure Sirius, thanks."

The rest of the walk through the forest and up the grounds passed in silence. No one wanting to break the blanket of calm that had settled over the group. Upon reaching the entrance doors they stilled. In front of them were most of the Weasley clan and many of Cerin's friends, well so much for not having to face them until he was ready. But Cerin was used to things not happening the way he wanted them to.

"Harry" a feminine voice shouted, "thank god you're ok, you had me so worried. Don't you ever dare go running away like that again. You almost gave me a heart attack, and Harry I'm only fifteen, I'd rather not have a heart attack at any point in my life, never mind having one so young. Do you understand Harry James Potter, you are not to do that to me ever again!" The assembled crowd looked on in shock at the teenaged girl that had just berated the young man. Not that any of them disapproved, it was pretty much the exact same thing all of them wanted to say to the boy, for having given them such a fright.

Loud growling stopped everyone in his or her tracks. Not many had noticed the great hulking form of the wolf, which was stood next to the boy, but in all fairness, they had all been rather preoccupied with the relief of finding Harry safe and sound. Now that they had seen the beast though, it was hard to take your eyes of it. What all of them wondered though was why it had started growling. It had seemed perfectly at ease before, and even now didn't seem likely to attack anyone. All it was doing was standing protectively around the small teen, and growling warningly.

"Blimey mate, what's with the giant dog? Had to get yourself another protector did you? Wasn't it enough that you had everyone else ready to die for you, had to add another potential victim to the list?" said Ron, sneering. He didn't seem all that happy to see the boy that was supposed to be his best friend. He was getting rather fed up of Harry. Always seeking out attention. I mean take for example that stunt he'd just pulled, he had freaked out a bit and disappeared over what must be some inconsequential thing. And then everyone was looking for him. Hell, even his own family had gone looking for him. They hadn't even really bothered to check on Ron. Yes they'd checked him after the battle to see if he was hurt and told him that they loved him, along with all the usual crap; but they didn't even spend any time with him. They'd gone of to check on their other kids, the more important ones.

He'd been in the middle of telling some people how he had been dueling three Death Eaters at a time at one point during the battle, when his parents had found him and told him that Harry had done a runner and that he had to go and help and find the brat. Well he was done with Harry stealing all his attention. It was time for Ron to shine.

"Ronald Weasley! How dare you say that to poor Harry. You apologise right now young man, and perhaps your father and I won't make you degnome the garden for the next three years."

"No mum, I won't. It's true anyway isn't it? I mean look at how everyone that spends time with him ends up. His parents: dead, Cedric: dead, Sirius: in Azkaban for twelve years, Hermione and I have also been injured multiple times running around after him on his crazy adventures. I'm through with you Harry; I can't deal with your problems anymore. And anyway, what's with the new look. Got tired of looking at your ugly mug everyday in the morning? At least like this people won't feel the urge to throw up when they see you. It's an improvement but it just makes you look even more freakish then before. Why don't you just do everyone a favour and go away and never come back." With those words Ron stalked off before anyone could stop him.

The congregation just stood there in silence, shocked. They had never heard Ron say anything like that before. Sure they knew that Ron and Harry sometimes had the odd spat, but Ron had been outright vicious this time.

He had crossed a line, and one particular individual, a certain potions master, was looking forward to making the boy rue the day he ever insulted his son. Oh yes this was going o be fun…

Trying to diffuse the tension in the air, Remus spoke: "Hey cub, how about we go to my old quarters and have some food? Sound good?" When Harry minutely nodded his head, he was rushed off followed by Sirius, Narcissa, Lucius and Severus.

The Weasleys and Hermione, sensing that this was a private matter and that they wouldn't be welcome stayed behind, vowing to apologise to Harry on Ron's behalf. They really didn't know what had come over him. But Hermione was determined to get to the bottom of it, along with the appearance of the wolf and Harry's altered form.

HPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPH

Severus was worried for his son. He had barely reacted to anything that had happened to him. It was not normal for teenagers that had just discovered a set of lost parents, a new elf form, and his animal partner to take it all without at least some expression of distress. Yet it was precisely what Cerin was doing. He hadn't shown any negative emotions, not once. Not even when the Wesley spawn had verbally attacked Cerin. He had remained worryingly quiet and stoic.

The potions master knew that this wasn't a healthy way of coping, that eventually Cerin would have a breakdown, and the longer he put it off and managed to suppress his emotions, the more violent and of a larger magnitude it would be.

Arriving at the werewolf's old quarters they all crowded inside, settling on the sofa's and armchairs. A house elf had been in just seconds before and had cleaned the apartments along with starting a fire in the hearth. A tray filled with steaming cups tea and some sandwiches and biscuits was placed on the low table. The doorway had to be expanded to allow the wolf to get inside before it curled itself around the base of Cerin's armchair in front of the fire.

"Now cub, could you tell us why Valerius started growling when Hermione spoke to you?" asked Sirius. Cerin's face flushed red with embarrassment, " Oh, that… it was nothing, it was just that she called me Harry James Potter, and it just hit me again that that wasn't my name, that I've never really been Harry Potter. I guess Val must have picked up on my upset." Seeing that the subject was not helping the boy's stress levels, Lucius changed the subject.

"Now that we're all hear, are there any questions you would like to ask Cerin?"

"Yes si-Lucius, I have a few questions. Where would I be staying from now on? Do I have to tell the school about you and my creature inheritance or do I have to keep it secret. Where will Valerius be staying? I mean I don't have to get of him do I? Please don't make me get rid of him, I promise I'll take full responsibility for all his actions, but I'm sure that nothing will happen, so please can I…"

"Cerin, Cerin, it's alright, nobody will make you part from Valerius, the bond between wood elf and their partner animal is sacred. For as long as you live he will always be by your side." Explained Lucius. " As to your living arrangements it would all depend as to what you would want. If you so wish you can go back to the Dursleys" seeing Cerin's panicked look he move on "or you could stay with Severus Narcissa and I. We'd even be happy to host your godfather and Mr. Lupin if that would make you feel more at ease."

"I think I'd rather spend some time with all of you, so I can get to know all of you. Is that ok?"

"Yes Cerin, it's more than okay, we're you're family now, and I think I speak for all of us when I say that we'd all relish the chance to be a part of your life and to be able to get to know the real you."

"Thanks, that sounds like something I could do. And I'd really like it if Sirius and Remus could stay with me too. That is if you guys are cool with it." he added, turning towards said men.

"It's absolutely fine pup, no need to worry. " Reassured Remus, speaking for both Sirius and himself.

"Moving on, you need tell no one of your status as a wood elf if you do not want to Cerin. You can choose to tell whomever you wish of your creature nature, however we will need to inform the ministry and the school of your parentage. Otherwise we wouldn't be able to gain custody of you, and the ministry might send you to live in some other family or in an orphanage. As I understand it Albus Dumbledore was your magical guardian and with his death, you have become a ward of the ministry."

"It's not a big deal, I understand why we have to tell everyone. Also I'm sure as hell glad to not have to go live at the ministry. " He added with a shaky breath, belonging to the Ministry scared the living daylights out of him. He was also immensely relieved that he never had to return to the Dursley's if he didn't want to. Cerin was finally thinking that maybe, just maybe things were looking up for him.

"Are those all of your questions answered dear?" inquired Narcissa. "Um yep, I think that was all of em, well at least for now anyway."

"Good, I was wondering, if it would be agreeable to invite Draco to join us, seeing as he is part of this family."

Oh God, he had to speak to the ferret, his half-brother, now. Maybe things weren't really getting any better.

HPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHP

AN: Thank you for all the reviews! All of your suggestions for the names were brilliant. In the end it came down to two names Mercury suggested by wolfcathope, and Valerius by Cassie. But thank you to everyone else; it really is amazing to get so many reviews. So please review more!


End file.
